The Aussie View of Sarah Palin

The Aussie View of Sarah Palin
To those who live Down Under, Palin is Middle America incarnate — for better and for worse.
September 19, 2008 by Arthur Chrenkoff

Native critics of Australia’s alleged foreign policy subservience to America, as well as of the prevalence and popularity of American popular culture, often refer to Australia in contempt and exasperation as the 51st state. That’s not quite accurate; should Australia join the United States (of Oceania? if you excuse the Orwellian undertone), she would add six new states to the Great Republic. Throw in Puerto Rico, and Obama would actually get his 57 states.

There’s no prospect of that (though I can’t speak for Puerto Rico). Australians are happy how and where they are, equal but separate: conflicted friends, allies and trading partners. I would hope that an average Australian knows more about America than an average Brit (though I can’t guarantee that he or she would necessarily better like what they know). Certainly a lot of Australians, particularly the globe-trotting Generation Xs and Ys, have “done” the East and West Coasts and had their pictures taken with the Statue of Liberty or the Hollywood sign in the background. However, many parts of the U.S. still remain off the beaten track and off the mental map for us here Down Under...

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The Aussie View of Sarah Palin